MP Field’s fury at the ‘understudies’ sent to BHS probe

CITY firms involved in last year’s ill-fated BHS buyout are to be recalled to Parliament after the MP chairing the probe into the affair slammed their ‘miserable’ performance at last week’s hearings.

The chairman of the Work and Pensions Committee, Frank Field MP, said some firms had sent the wrong people to the hearings and must now allow MPs to question the key advisers.

The news of a fresh interrogation for City firms comes as the future of BHS rests on a knife-edge with bidders told they needed to come up with £100million in a matter of days to rescue the company from liquidation.

Field told The Mail on Sunday that MPs had become frustrated in their hearings after some representatives refused to answer basic questions citing ‘client confidentiality’. And he said some firms had sent people who had not been closely enough involved to answer questions or take responsibility.

He said: ‘Nobody gets away with sending an understudy to a parliamentary committee. They sent the wrong people. This is not a football match. You don’t just send in somebody from the bench. If you were personally taking the fee, you should come in the public arena and answer for what you’ve been up to,’ he said.

MPs are interviewing dozens of witnesses as part of an investigation into the failure of BHS last month and the collapse of its pension scheme into the Pension Protection Fund.

Advisers for Green on his sale of the chain for £1 last March included Goldman Sachs, Linklaters and Nabarro, while Olswang and Grant Thornton advised buyer Dominic Chappell.

Field declined to be specific about which firms he planned to recall.

‘It was the most miserable spectacle. I thought some of the performances were so poor that I began to sympathise with Sir Philip Green. I guess we will find he’s been pretty generous with the fees and what he must now be witnessing is that they have taken the fees but none of them has the backbone to defend their role and him,’ he said.

‘I don’t think anyone would want to employ the firms we’ve seen given they were clearly anxious to take the fees but not defend their clients,’ he said. MPs are scheduled to speak with both Sir Philip Green and Chappell next month.

Meanwhile, sources said potential buyers have been given just four days to find £100million in new funds for BHS to help pay debts and replenish stock.

Greg Tufnell, brother of former England cricketer Phil, was described by one source this weekend as ‘the only game in town’ to save the business. He is backed by a wealthy Portuguese family.

Advisers representing Tufnell, who was previously managing director at Mothercare and Burton Menswear, were locked in meetings on Friday night. A further meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.

It is understood that administrator Duff & Phelps then wants to announce a rescue deal for the 164 stores and 11,000 staff on Thursday once firm evidence for new financing is provided.

If that fails it is likely that liquidators will be called in to break the company up.